


Inevitable

by AnnECasap



Series: WarriorWitch [5]
Category: Mulan (2020)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Post-Canon, Tiny fluff because I can't resist apparently, sads
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-17
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:47:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27063652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnECasap/pseuds/AnnECasap
Summary: It was inescapable. It was bound to happen.
Relationships: Fa Mulan | Hua Mulan/Xian Lang (Disney)
Series: WarriorWitch [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1976737
Comments: 12
Kudos: 61





	Inevitable

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, my lovelies. I'm coming at ya to provide you with your weekly dose of Warriorwitch/Lovebirds content. This one is my attempt at angst that results in a character death. This is not how I originally envisioned it all, but it's the one I'm going with. I tried my best. Can't ask for more than that. Please enjoy.
> 
> I do not own Mulan (2020). Please do not kill me like how I'm about to kill this beloved woman.

Mulan wiped off the sweat that accumulated on her brow. The summer sun glared down at her as she tilled the soil on their farm. Her energy today wasn’t as boundless as it used to be back then. Hardened muscle had deteriorated slightly throughout the long, peaceful years she lived with her beloved wife on their quiet farm. The hot sunshine seeped through her tissue and into her bones, zapping her strength quickly as she heaved and struggled through her efforts. Staking the ground with her rake, the retired warrior took a moment under the hot sun to collect her breath. 

Almost fifty years had passed since the Rourans invaded China and changed her life forever. No wars or bloody conflicts came to pass over them. In their time of peace, prosperity, and love, Mulan and Xian Lang were blessed to raise an orphaned daughter as their own and said daughter went on to explore the world and teach others about chi. Xian Lang’s dream of creating a safe place where women could live freely and be themselves without constraint had been realized when they found Yan.

Mulan gazed off into the never-ending rolling green hills under the blue sky. Although the years had finally caught up with her, she was content. She lived her life without regrets. Not once had the warrior experienced a second of loneliness ever since Xian Lang came into her life and she thanked the gods, her ancestors, and her phoenix guardian everyday for the loving family she had been gifted with. 

Her reverie had broke when a muffled crash and yelp of pain resounded from inside their home. The retired warrior raced back to the house, going as fast as her legs could carry her despite her body’s desire for rest. 

Throwing the door open, Mulan found a broken bowl of fruits littering the floor and a hunched over Xian Lang, one hand grasping the back of a chair and the other holding her lower back. She quickly moved to ease her lover down into the seat and then set about cleaning up the mess around them. 

“Are you ok, my love?”

Xian Lang waved her off. “I’m all right. Just old.” 

Mulan wasn’t buying the smirk her wife was shooting her. The retired warrior pursed her lips before rising to her feet to place a kiss on the crown of the other woman’s head, careful not to spill the fragments in her hands. 

“Why don’t you go back to bed, love? I’m almost done with the farm chores for the day.”

“Nonsense. I’d rather much enjoy the sunshine with you.”

Mulan chuckled and gave in. She helped her wife to her feet and brought them back outside, disposing the trash in her hand along the way. Seniority was hitting Xian Lang harder than the savior of China. Her movements became hampered, streaks of silver ran down her jet black locks, and wrinkles appeared on her still-beautiful face. 

“As you wish. Just, promise me you won’t ruin my newly planted fruits, then.”

Xian Lang scoffed. “What’s there to ruin? They don’t even taste sweet,”

“I’m going to drop you on the steps.”

“If you would let me finish!” She scolded, but there was no malice behind it. “I was going to say that the fruits never even taste as sweet as you, my love.” The former witch finished with a wink. 

Mulan hummed and smiled. “I’m still going to drop you anyway.”

“You won’t dare-. Mulan!”

****

Days had passed and Xian Lang’s condition gradually worsened. Her strength weakened and the pain in her lower back became more prominent. Every now and then, the former witch would hack dry, heaving coughs from her lungs. Healers were brought in from the nearby village, but there was only so much they could do to delay the inevitable. Mulan’s heart sank with each passing day as all she could do was just stand by and watch. 

“Do not cry, my love. We still have time and I’m still here.” Xian Lang would often remind her warrior.

Despite it all, the retired officer still cherished every minute spent with her beloved wife. Mulan and Xian Lang made the most out of their numbered days together. 

“Aren’t you supposed to be in bed?”

“I was. And then I woke up to find my lovely wife missing.” 

Mulan paused her harvest to shoot an apologetic smile at her wife standing in the middle of their porch, but the latter wouldn’t relent. Sighing, the guilty woman gathered her basket of produce and walked back to the house. 

Placing it down at her side, Mulan kissed the pout that formed on her wife’s lips off. 

“I’m sorry. I wanted to get started on dinner before it got too late.”

Xian Lang drew her lover in close and smiled softly. “All right. But I get to help.”

Mulan scoffed and picked up her basket. “Almost fifty years and you still won’t let me work in the kitchen alone. Unbelievable.”

The older woman threw a grin over her shoulder as she paused in the doorway. “Would you believe me if I said I’m just tired of being bedridden?” 

“Liar!”

The couple got to work on making dinner with the fresh harvest from their garden. They made idle chit-chat as they prepared the vegetables and meats. Mulan wasn’t terrible in the kitchen. She had definitely improved over the years, but Xian Lang always preferred to be with her or she’d do it herself. The former witch just had more experience with cooking and hunting due to living as an outcast for most of her life. The farm work was saved for the officer who had more energy. It worked for them. And Mulan would occasionally chase chickens from the rooftops and suffer a minor fall. Who knew that the greatest warrior in China would always be bested by poultry?

As Mulan rinsed the meats and vegetables, she abruptly stopped when she heard a groan followed by a clang from cutlery coming from behind. Whipping her head, the retired officer found her wife clutching a bloodied hand. Mulan moved fast and wrapped the crimson-coated digits with a nearby rag. 

“Sorry... My hand, cramped.” Xian Lang hissed. 

Mulan looked up at her with sorrowful eyes. When the makeshift bandage was properly applied, the retired warrior softly kissed the wound. 

“Please go back to bed...”

“Mulan-“

“My love, please..!”

Xian Lang met Mulan’s pensive stare with her own. They were barely holding it together and neither one was fooling the other. Ever since the diagnosis, the couple was left devastated over how little time they now had. The older woman summoned the last reserves of her strength constantly just to be strong for Mulan, who seemed to be fighting a losing battle of the idea of eventually losing her beloved wife. Neither one would admit it, but often times, Xian Lang woke up during the late hours of the night to Mulan crying quietly on the side of their bed. 

The older woman sighed and gave a long kiss goodnight to her wife. Brushing her thumb along the warrior’s cheek, she retired to their bedroom. 

“I love you.” Xian Lang called out to her from the doorway. 

“I lo-...” She couldn’t finish. Rising sobs bubbled from her throat and grew in intensity. Pressing her palms to her eyes, Mulan wept freely. If Xian Lang was suffering from old age, her lover was suffering from a broken heart. They lived most of their lives together in the light of love but now, dark days were ahead of them. Nothing ever lasts forever and there was nothing they could do to lengthen their duration together. The older woman bore witness to the love of her life succumb to despair. They were both dead women. 

****

Time was beginning to wear thin. When news of Xian Lang’s status was given, word was sent out to their daughter living on the other side of the country. Yan immediately dropped everything to rush home, but it was a race against time. 

She had made it back, at the cost of tiring out her horse and foregoing food certain days, but she couldn’t care less. The daughter wanted to see her mothers. 

“Mama! Mother!” Yan walked through the front door and did a quick scan from the kitchen to the den. No sign of either of them. As she stepped closer inside, the young woman came face to face with an aged, retired officer appearing from the hallway. 

“Mama!” Yan ran straight into Mulan’s awaiting arms. 

“I missed you, my daughter.” Mulan cried tears of joy and ran her hand through the young woman’s dark, soft locks. 

“I missed you, too. Where’s mother?”

The question weighed heavily on her heart. Her wife was dying. There was no denying it anymore. 

“Mama?” Yan tried to gauge her parent’s reaction. 

Mulan pursed her lips that morphed into a forlorn smile. Laying a tender hand on Yan’s cheek, the retired officer took a moment to admire her daughter’s beauty and growth before taking her hand and leading them to the bedroom. 

“My love? Yan is home.”

Xian Lang perked up from the mattress at the sight of their daughter in the flesh. The wide smile on her face creating more wrinkles on her aged face. 

“My baby girl..!” 

Yan flew to her side on the bed and wrapped her older mother in a gentle but firm hug. 

“I’m home, mother. I missed you.”

“I missed you, too, darling.”

The family spent the rest of the day gathered around the table eating and sharing stories until the sun went down. Mulan and Xian Lang delighted in hearing the progress and success of their daughter’s efforts in bringing about a safe society where women and men could develop and harness the power of their chi without discrimination. Thanks to her, a small school was formed where young students from all walks of life could learn about their universal gift and martial arts. 

As they finished eating and talking for hours, Mulan made to clean up the dishes, but Yan stopped her in her tracks. 

“Mama! I got it. Go ahead and relax.”

“That’s quite all right. We wouldn’t want to keep you if you need to head back. I know it’s a long journey.”

“Nonsense! I’m here to spend time with my family. The school can wait.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I am!” Yan chuckled reassuringly. “Go. Get some rest.”

Xian Lang placed her hand on her wife’s shoulder. “Come on, love. She’ll be fine. Goodnight, Yan! Don’t stay up too late.”

“Goodnight, mother! Goodnight, mama!”

Kisses and hugs were exchanged before the couple retreated back to bed while their treasured daughter went to clean the mess. As much as she loved being back home with her family, it was excruciating difficult to see the effects time and age had on her parents. She knew she was going to lose them very soon. The young woman was just fortunate enough to at least say her goodbye. 

****

Time had run up. A healer was brought up one last time when Xian Lang’s lifespan reached its end. Her persistent coughs surfaced almost every minute and she no longer had any energy left to move, hardly even to get out of bed. Spotted hands never ceased their shaking and her once black hair was completely white. Mulan and Yan stayed at her side through it all with their daughter only leaving to attend to small duties around the house. 

The healer stepped outside to give the grieving family some privacy as he made his final assessment of his patient. He gave the mama and daughter a sympathetic smile before exiting. 

Mulan and Yan moved to Xian Lang’s sides, grasping her hands firmly and as tight as they could. Tears fell from their mournful faces. 

“Do not cry, my loves. Death is never the end, it’s just a path we will all take someday.” Xian Lang raised her arms up to brush a kiss to the back of her wife and daughter’s hands. 

This was it. This was their time to say goodbye. 

“Mother...” Yan started shakily. “I love you so much. I don’t even know how to begin to thank you for finding me and being a loving, caring parent. Thank you for being my mother and teaching me about chi. I wouldn’t be the person I am today if it weren’t for you and mama.”

“My darling daughter, Yan... I can’t tell you how proud I am to see the beautiful, prosperous woman you’ve become. You’re far stronger and greater than either me or your mama. Thank you for coming home, being a good daughter, and accomplishing my lifelong dream. I love you, my baby girl. Wherever you go, and whatever you do, know that I will always be watching over you.”

Their daughter wept to herself as Xian Lang turned her attention to her partner, her wife, her lover, and her heart. 

“My love...” she kissed the back of her hand again as tears began to cascade down her withering face. “I love you with all my heart. I will forever be grateful to you for loving me and helping me find my place in the world. It was always by your side. You’ve given me so much... I hope the love I gave back every day was enough. 

This family is my greatest love, my greatest treasure. I’m so damn lucky to have had you both in my life. There is nothing I regret or would change in our entire time together.”

“Xian Lang,” Mulan mustered all her strength and courage to show her affection and gratitude to her lover one last time. “I love you... I love you. I love you. I love you. The greatest gift and honor was having you for a wife. Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for you. For our family. And now... Now I wish my ancestors gave me the power to save you again.”

“You already have... It’s time for me to go.” Xian Lang wasn’t afraid of death. She had already died and been saved once. 

“Kiss me, my love, Mulan.” 

The lovers poured every ounce of love, affection, and gratitude they could into their last kiss together. Everything they could sum up from their marriage and all the words left that they could tell each other over and over was conveyed through the small, meaningful, physical gesture. It would last forever. 

“I love you, my warriors. I will always be with you...” Xian Lang passed away with a serene smile on her peaceful face. 

Mulan and Yan broke down and clung tightly to the former witch, the woman who had given them so much love. The warrior never really saved the older woman from death way back then. She had just simply given her life anew. But there would be no rebirth this time. They would not be together again until the officer would be walking with the dead. In time, Mulan and Xian Lang would reunite and celebrate their eternal love for each other in the afterlife. But for now, all they could do was weep and weep and weep.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed. (Is enjoyed the right word?) This was my first time writing this kind of material so I hope I didn't fail spectacularly. If I did, you disliked it, and thought there were some areas I could improve on or change, please let me know. Stay tuned because there's more to come. Another fic will be up next weekend. Until next time.


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